{"id":23344,"date":"2021-04-27T15:00:27","date_gmt":"2021-04-27T13:00:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/?p=23344"},"modified":"2021-04-26T15:09:53","modified_gmt":"2021-04-26T13:09:53","slug":"how-to-avoid-false-conversions-in-google-analytics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/how-to-avoid-false-conversions-in-google-analytics\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Avoid False Conversions in Google Analytics"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wpb-content-wrapper\"><p>[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Google Analytics is arguably the world\u2019s most popular web analytics tool. It\u2019s regularly featured on year-end lists of the most useful or popular analytics tools, and it has lots and lots of great ratings on review websites. It\u2019s like that for a good reason, too \u2013 Google Analytics is full of features, it gives you access to tons of data, and it\u2019s completely free to use. It\u2019s the ubiquitous, indispensable analytics tool everyone should <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/getting-started-with-google-analytics\/\">learn how to use<\/a>.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Unfortunately, however, it\u2019s also sometimes wrong. For example, Google Analytics might sometimes record false conversions and bundle them with the good ones, giving you a distorted and inaccurate number of conversions. If you\u2019re a sucker for calculating metrics \u2013 and who isn\u2019t \u2013 then every metric that\u2019s derived using the number of conversions will be off.<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Because \u201coff\u201d isn\u2019t something you want your metrics to be, let\u2019s see if we can help shine a light on the reasons why Google Analytics might show you false conversions, and how you can prevent it from happening.<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]We\u2019ll talk about:<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;22px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><a href=\"#tracking-false-conversions-in-google-analytics\">Tracking False Conversions in Google Analytics<\/a><\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;5px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><a href=\"#making-sure-you-only-track-relevant-pages\">Making Sure You Only Track Relevant Pages<\/a><\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;5px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><a href=\"#checking-for-users-landing-directly-on-the-conversion-pages\">Checking for Users Landing Directly on The Conversion Pages<\/a><\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;5px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><a href=\"#ensuring-youre-not-linking-to-the-conversion-pages\">Ensuring You\u2019re Not Linking to the Conversion Pages<\/a><\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;68px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\"><a id=\"tracking-false-conversions-in-google-analytics\"><\/a>Tracking False Conversions in Google Analytics<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;21px&#8221;]<div class=\"qodef-single-image-holder   qodef-has-border \">\n    <div class=\"qodef-si-inner\" >\n                                    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"969\" height=\"441\" src=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Google-Analytics.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"Google Analytics\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Google-Analytics.jpg 969w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Google-Analytics-300x137.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Google-Analytics-768x350.jpg 768w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Google-Analytics-620x282.jpg 620w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 969px) 100vw, 969px\" \/>                        <\/div>\n<\/div>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;38px&#8221;][vc_column_text]A conversion, <a href=\"https:\/\/support.google.com\/analytics\/answer\/6086209?hl=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">according to Google<\/a>, is a completed activity that is relevant to the success of your business. A purchase is a straightforward example of conversion, as is a signup for a newsletter. <strong>You don\u2019t have to limit yourself to these activities, however.<\/strong> You can count entering the checkout process as a conversion, just as you can count a person spending a certain amount of time on your website, or a person viewing a video, like a conversion.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]<strong>There are two ways you can track conversions in Google Analytics \u2013 using transactions and goals.<\/strong> Transactions are tracked automatically when you set up eCommerce tracking. Goals are available out of the bag, but you have to set each goal up individually. This might increase your workload, but it also gives you much more flexibility when it comes to what you can track. It\u2019s also the reason why<strong> goals are useful even if you have an online store, but you couldn\u2019t say the same for transactions and non-eCommerce websites.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;72px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"qodef-h5\">How to Set Up Goals<\/h3>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Google Analytics makes setting up goals easy. You can navigate to <em><strong>Admin &gt; View<\/strong><\/em>, find a list of goals you\u2019re tracking, and the button that lets you add a new goal. When setting up a goal, you can either choose a template or set up a custom goal. <strong>With a custom goal, you can set up your goal type and the goal details.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;50px&#8221;]<div class=\"qodef-single-image-holder   qodef-has-border \">\n    <div class=\"qodef-si-inner\" >\n                                    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"969\" height=\"518\" src=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Setting-Up-Goals.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"Setting Up Goals\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Setting-Up-Goals.jpg 969w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Setting-Up-Goals-300x160.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Setting-Up-Goals-768x411.jpg 768w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Setting-Up-Goals-620x331.jpg 620w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 969px) 100vw, 969px\" \/>                        <\/div>\n<\/div>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;38px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Goal types are especially important because they\u2019ll allow you to choose what you want to count as a conversion. <strong>With the event type, for example, you can set up to count something happening as a conversion.<\/strong> This might sound like the perfect type of goal for a conversion, as a conversion is an action, but it\u2019s sometimes prohibitively difficult to implement.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;72px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"qodef-h5\">Why Is the Destination Type More Important for Troubleshooting False Conversions?<\/h3>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]The destination type of goal is easier to set up. For example, you can track how many people entered the checkout process by tracking how many people have landed on the checkout page. <strong>You can track how many people have completed a purchase by tracking how many people have landed on the order-completed or thank-you page.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;50px&#8221;]<div class=\"qodef-single-image-holder   qodef-has-border \">\n    <div class=\"qodef-si-inner\" >\n                                    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"969\" height=\"518\" src=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Setting-Up-Goals-2.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"Setting Up Goals\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Setting-Up-Goals-2.jpg 969w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Setting-Up-Goals-2-300x160.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Setting-Up-Goals-2-768x411.jpg 768w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Setting-Up-Goals-2-620x331.jpg 620w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 969px) 100vw, 969px\" \/>                        <\/div>\n<\/div>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;38px&#8221;][vc_column_text]<strong>This reliance on the destination type of conversion will often pop up as the major reason why you\u2019re seeing false conversions in Google Analytics.<\/strong> Any effort to avoid false conversions in Google Analytics will probably start with checking specific things about destinations.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;80px&#8221;][vc_widget_sidebar sidebar_id=&#8221;new-seo-banner&#8221;][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;80px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\"><a id=\"making-sure-you-only-track-relevant-pages\"><\/a>Make Sure You Only Track Relevant Pages<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]First things first \u2013 <strong>you need to make sure that you\u2019re tracking only the relevant pages<\/strong>. The place where you can check this out is the Reverse Goal Path window. Go to <em><strong>Conversions &gt; Goals &gt; Reverse Goal Path<\/strong><\/em> and pay attention to the leftmost column.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;50px&#8221;]<div class=\"qodef-single-image-holder   qodef-has-border \">\n    <div class=\"qodef-si-inner\" >\n                                    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"969\" height=\"389\" src=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Reverse-Goal-Path.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"Reverse Goal Path\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Reverse-Goal-Path.jpg 969w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Reverse-Goal-Path-300x120.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Reverse-Goal-Path-768x308.jpg 768w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Reverse-Goal-Path-620x249.jpg 620w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 969px) 100vw, 969px\" \/>                        <\/div>\n<\/div>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;38px&#8221;][vc_column_text]This part of the list contains the Goal Request URIs \u2013 you\u2019ll be familiar with URIs after setting up goals &#8211; that represent the goal completion location. <strong>When a website visitor comes to these pages, it will be counted as goal completion, adding to the number of conversions.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Check whether all of the URIs look familiar to you.<strong> If you find something that doesn\u2019t belong there, it\u2019s a sure sign that you\u2019ll be seeing some false conversion results.<\/strong> Find the appropriate goal and fix the URI.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;68px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\"><a id=\"checking-for-users-landing-directly-on-the-conversion-pages\"><\/a>Check for Users Landing Directly on The Conversion Pages<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Next, you should figure out whether you have users landing directly on your conversion pages without going through the appropriate funnel. <strong>There are plenty of different reasons this might happen, including:<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;22px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><strong>Google indexed your conversion pages<\/strong>, leading to them becoming searchable and getting direct traffic from search engine results.<\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul><ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><strong>You have ads that point directly to the conversion pages<\/strong>, leading to direct traffic from that direction.<\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul><ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><strong>There are issues with your tracking code or Google Analytics itself<\/strong>, leading to conversions being off.<\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Before you find out the reason behind the problem, you first need to determine you have the problem. The way to do that is by heading over to the segment builder \u2013 <em><strong>Admin &gt; View &gt; Segments<\/strong><\/em> \u2013 and <strong>creating a one-step sequence that starts with the user\u2019s first interaction being landing on a conversion page.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;50px&#8221;]<div class=\"qodef-single-image-holder   qodef-has-border \">\n    <div class=\"qodef-si-inner\" >\n                                    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"969\" height=\"580\" src=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Segments.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"Segments\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Segments.jpg 969w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Segments-300x180.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Segments-768x460.jpg 768w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Segments-620x371.jpg 620w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 969px) 100vw, 969px\" \/>                        <\/div>\n<\/div>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;38px&#8221;][vc_column_text]This segment will show you how many \u2013 if any \u2013 instances of this have transpired. To dig into it and get a bit closer to what has happened, head over to <em><strong>Reports &gt; Acquisition &gt; All Traffic &gt; Source\/Medium<\/strong><\/em>. There, you\u2019ll be able to <strong>choose the segment you\u2019ve created from a list and apply it to the whole number of visits<\/strong>. You\u2019ll see how many users match the criteria and where they came from.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;50px&#8221;]<div class=\"qodef-single-image-holder   qodef-has-border \">\n    <div class=\"qodef-si-inner\" >\n                                    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"969\" height=\"563\" src=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Source-Medium.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"Source Medium\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Source-Medium.jpg 969w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Source-Medium-300x174.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Source-Medium-768x446.jpg 768w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Source-Medium-620x360.jpg 620w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 969px) 100vw, 969px\" \/>                        <\/div>\n<\/div>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;38px&#8221;][vc_column_text]<strong>From there, you can start taking concrete steps to prevent these problems from causing false conversions.<\/strong> So you can pause the ads that were leading directly to the conversion pages. You can <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/how-to-add-nofollow-links-in-wordpress\/\">make the links nofollow<\/a>. You can further investigate any of the issues that include missing tracking code, use of different versions of Google Analytics on different pages, or time-zone settings that cause the session to be doubled at midnight. <strong>You\u2019ll be in for quite a hunt.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;68px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\"><a id=\"ensuring-youre-not-linking-to-the-conversion-pages\"><\/a>Ensure You\u2019re Not Linking to the Conversion Pages<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Sometimes, you can inadvertently include a link to your conversion pages somewhere on your website where it shouldn\u2019t be. <strong>That way, a user can visit the page simply by clicking the link instead of having performed an action that leads them to the page.<\/strong> Because you\u2019ve set the goal type as a destination, Google Analytics will count it as a conversion anyway.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]<strong>The easiest way to figure out if this is an issue is by using a website crawler to identify the links on your website.<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.screamingfrog.co.uk\/seo-spider\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Screaming Frog<\/a> is a popular choice \u2013 you might be able to use it for free, and you don\u2019t have to dig around a lot to learn that something is wrong. <strong>As long as you see a conversion page in the list of results after running Screaming Frog, you\u2019ll be in the red.<\/strong> This tool will also help you find out which pages are linking to your conversion pages \u2013 all you have to do is look at the Inlinks tab.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;68px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\">Let\u2019s Wrap It Up!<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Any analytics tool is only as good as the data it lets you see \u2013 Google Analytics included. And even if it is the world\u2019s most-used web analytics tool, it doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s correct all the time. It doesn\u2019t have to be its fault, but sometimes it will be.<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Either way, if you notice you\u2019re getting false conversions in Google Analytics, or if you have reasons to suspect it might be happening, you\u2019ll be in for some detective work. But if you\u2019re looking for accurate metrics and even the slightest deviations are a cause for concern, you\u2019ll be able to figure out what\u2019s going on either from within the Analytics tool or with some help from third-party tools.<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Google Analytics is arguably the world\u2019s most popular web analytics tool. It\u2019s regularly featured on year-end lists of the most [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9295,"featured_media":23393,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[94,4],"class_list":["post-23344","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-marketing","tag-analytics","tag-tips"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23344","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9295"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23344"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23344\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/23393"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23344"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23344"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23344"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}